Safety bucket



C. C. FIGGE SAFETY BUCKET Jan. 21, 1958 Filed May 9, 1956 ifs-.6-

INVENTOR." CAR/POLL C. [-7665,

ATT'Y United States Patent l SAFETY BUCKET Carroll C. Figge, Batavia, Ill.

Application May 9, 1956, Serial No. 583,785

17 Claims. (Cl. 222-509) This invention relates in general to a pail or bucket for transporting hot liquids and is more particularly described as a safety supply bucket for hot bituminous or other roofing materials although it may have a more general application for other than hot liquids.

Many accidents occuring in applying roofing material are burns due to the spilling or splashing of hot liquid asphalt or coal tar pitch. Such spillage may occur when carrying a bucket up a ladder, transporting it on a hoist, and also in actually discharging the hot liquid from a container. Even when such liquid is poured over the edge of an ordinary bucket, the wind on top of a roof may be so strong that it fans out the thin layer discharged over the rim and thus blows the liquid into contact with the hands or body of a worker or otherwise discharges the liquid in a location where it is not desired.

The present invention provides means for reducing the splashing of liquid from a bucket as it is carried or transported, controls the discharge of hot liquid from a pail or bucket and confines the discharged liquid to a substantial stream without pouring the liquid in a thin layer, thereby reducing the tendency to be scattered or sprayed in an undesirable manner by the wind.

An important object of the invention is to provide a bucket for transporting hot or dangerous liquids with an anti-splash rim and a bouyant closing float to engage the under side of the rim.

A further object of the invention is to provide a bucket with a filling opening having a float therein which rides upon the liquid and prevents the bucket from being filled too full of a hot or dangerous liquid.

Still a further object of the invention is to provide a discharge opening for the bucket which will maintain the liquid in a substantial pouring body without fanning out the liquid as it is discharged.

Still a further object of the invention is to provide a discharge opening which is below an anti-splash rim and normally covered by a float when the bucket is full of the liquid.

Still a further object of the invention is to provide a bucket for bituminous material which has a float with projections above and below for limiting the adherence of the float either in a raised or lowered position.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a bucket for hot materials having means for preventing hot liquid from splashing from the top of the bucket and with controllable valve means for localizing the discharge of liquid from the bucket other than through the top thereof.

Still a further object of the invention is to provide a safety bucket which has an oval or elongated cross section adapting it to be manually carried with the center of mass closer to the body of a workman.

Other objects of the invention will appear in the specification and will be apparent from the accompanying drawings in which,

Fig. 1 is a sectional view of a safety bucket in accordance with this invention.

2,820,580 Patented Jan. 21, 1958 Fig. 2 is a top view of the bucket as shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an end view of the bucket showing the dis charge spout.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of another form of safety bucket having a movable float and valve means operable from the top of the bucket for discharging liquid through the bottom of the bucket.

Fig. 5 is a top view of the bucket shown in Fig. 4; and

Fig. 6 shows a discharge opening in the bottom of a safety bucket with a valve operated from the lower edge of the bucket.

In all pails or buckets for carrying hot or dangerous materials such as acids, it is an advantage to have the bucket made in an oval shape so that when it is carried by a workman, he may centralize the weight of the bucket more closely at his side, thus reducing slopping or spilling and reducing the angle of the arm from his body in carrying a bucket. The pail itself is hot and he wishes to avoid contact of the pail with his body to avoid burns. It is also highly desirable to prevent the liquid from slopping or splashing from the bucket to prevent loss of the liquid and the discharge thereof in unwanted places as well as to insure that a fair amount of liquid is carried and can be discharged from the bucket in a substantially solid stream therefrom.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, a bucket 10 is made of sheet metal in any well known manner but preferably oval in cross section with a bail l2 pivoted across the shorter dimension so that the pail may be carried by the hand or arm of a worker with the center line of the bucket, and therefore the center of weight, as close to his side as possible. This enables him to carry a heavier load more easily because it does not unbalance his body by disposing the center of weight outwardly therefrom.

Secured at the inside of the bucket is an anti-splash rim 14 located near the top thereof and extending inwardly for an inch or more to provide a substantial barrier for the passage or splashing of liquid from the bucket.

The sides of the pail are substantially straight and of equal diameters from top to bottom rather than inclining inwardly at the bottom as in some pails, and a float 16 is loosely positioned within the bucket below the antisplash rim 14 and is adapted to rise at the top of a liquid in the bucket to contact the under surface of the rim 14 and to make a substantially close contact therewith. This float may be hollow and formed of metal or any other suitable material or it may be made of buoyant material such as wood. The float fits loosely within the bucket and will move from a position at the bottom of the bucket to a position where the top engages the rim 14 as liquid is poured into the bucket in filling it.

At the under side of the float and preferably at the periphery are a number of downward projections 18 which engage the bottom of the bucket when there is no liquid therein to reduce the surface contact of the float with the bottom. If the bucket is used for adhesive or hardening material such as a bituminous liquid, the float will tend to adhere flatly to the bottom, but if projections 18 are provided, the surface contact is so reduced that even if these projections do cause the float to adhere to the bottom, a slight jar or knock on the float will release it and it will ride freely on the top of a liquid A in the bucket.

At the top of the float and around the periphery thereof are a number of projections 20 which are adapted to engage the under side of the rim 14, thereby limiting the surface engagement of the float with the rim and prevent ing it from adhering thereto. Ordinarily the weight of the float itself is suflicient to disengage the float from the rim 14, but if an adhesive causes it to stick, the projections 20 limit the engagement of the float so that it is easily disits length extending around the periphery of the bucket so that in pouring liquid therefrom, it will be maintained in a more or less compact and solid body as distinguished from the discharge of material over the rim 14 or the upper edge of the bucket which tends to spread or fan out the liquid during the pouring operation. Such spreading of the liquid is objectionable as it tends to cool the liquid more rapidly and also in discharging bituminous material, for example, in a roofing operation, there is frequently a high wind which will pick up the thinner layer of material as it comes from the bucket and further spread or deposit it in an unwanted location; sometimes against the arms or clothes of a workman and sometimes in a place on the roof or elsewhere, where it is not wanted. 7

When carrying a bucket of this kind filled with hot liquid, the discharge opening 22 is substantially covered or enclosed by the adjacent edge of the float 16 so that even if there is a slight spillage from the opening 22, it is not material in amount and does not spill or spray in an objectionable manner. In discharging the liquid from the spout or opening 22, the bucket is inclined or tilted in a well known manner and the liquid is dis charged in a compact body or mass from the spout so that it does not tend to spray or fan out in the wind.

In the form shown in Figs. 4 and 5, a container or bucket 24 has a cover 26 which fits over approximately one-half of the top of the bucket which is also preferably oval in shape. Across the center, the cover has a downwardly turned flange 28 which extends to the upper edge of an inwardly extending anti-splash rim 349 near the top of the bucket. The cover 26 may be secured to the bucket by bendable flanges 32 or by any other suitable means extending over an upper head 34 in the edge of the bucket.

A float 36 is adapted to fill the remainder of the top opening of the bucket between the flange 28 of the cover and the inwardly projecting rim 3%. This float is su ported from the cover and to hinge relatively thereto by means of staples SSeXtending upwardly from the float to a height greater than the length of the flange 28, each staple 38 being loosely engaged by a loop 43 secured to the cover and projecting inwardly over the remaining open portion of the bucket in the path of the staples 38. At the inneredge of the float 36 is an up wardly extending ledge 42 slightly less in height than the flange 28 and adapted to engage the lower edge of the flange when the float is raised in the bucket by liquid therein.

When there is no liquid in the bucket, the float 36 falls to the extent permitted by the engagement of the staple 38 with the loops 40 and it hangs in an inclined position with the outer curved edge lowermost and the upper flange 42 in engagement with or below the flange 28 in position to engage the flange for a hinging movement thereon when the float is raised against the lower edge of the flange 23 and the under side of the rim 30. This type of bucket may also have a pouring aperture substantially covered by the float in its raised position as shown in Fig. 1, or it may have a bottom opening as shown in Fig. 4.

A bottom wall 44 has an open ring 46 set therein preferably below the cover 26 and a tubular shell 48 is threaded into the ring with discharge openings 56 in the bottom of the shell. A sleeve 52 is loosely slidable over the shell 48 and the lower edge of the sleeve engages a valve seat 54 on top of the ring 46 making a,

- 4 fluid-tight joint. for closing the sleeve and a stem 58 is threadedthrough the cap and extends through an opening in the cover 26. The weight of the sleeve 52 and the pressure of any liquid therein serves to hold the sleeve against the seat 54, but a coil spring 59 may be interposed between the cover 26 and the cap 56 tending also to maintain the valve sleeve 52 in a closed position.

At the top of the valve stem 58 is a handle 66 of wood or other heat nonconducting material to which the stem is secured by a nut 62 inset into the wood so that if the handle stem is hot, the heat will not be communicated to the handle 60. In order to indicate when the sleeve 52 is in closed position and to additionally maintain it in this position, an arm 64 extends from the stem 58 above the cover 26 and when the stem and the sleeve 52 are in their lowermost positions, the stem may be turned by the handle so that the arm 64 will engage under clip 66 secured to the top of the cover and projecting into the path of the arm. To disengage the arm and to open the valve sleeve 52, it is necessary only to turn the handle 6% freeing the arm 64 from the clip 66 and then to raise the handle so that the lower edge of the sleeve 52 uncovers the discharge openings 50.

Instead of having a valve extending through the cover, a conical valve 70 (as shown in Fig. 6) may be connected by a hinge 72 at one side of a discharge opening 74 in a bottom 76 having a short tubular rim 78 to which the hinge '72 is secured so that by swinging the valve 70 upwardly about its hinge, liquid may be discharged through the opening 74. To operate the valve, a cam 89 is mounted below the valve and is connected by a stem' 82 to a handle 84 at the outside of a bottom rim 86 so that by turning the handle, the cam may be ope-rated to open the valve.

With this construction, this safety bucket may have an oval or elongated shape which is more easily carried close to the body in which there is a float at the top of the bucket for preventing splashing or undesirable dis charge of the liquid from the top of the bucket and with a controlled outlet which may be near the top of the bucket covered by the float or in the bottom of the bucket and controlled from the top thereof or in the bottom of the bucket and controlled from some other location as from the bottom of the bucket itself. With the pouring spout at one side of the bucket, the discharge of liquid may be controlled and prevented from spray and by locating the discharge opening in the bottom of a bucket, the bucket may be placed with the discharge opening in position to accurately empty the bucket in a predetermined location. Thus the discharge of liquid is safeguarded and controlled and the bucket is particularly desirable for roofing operations, for manually transporting hot or dangerous liquids, and for discharging such liquids in a controlled stream rather than in an objectionable thin sheet.

While I have thus described preferred forms of the invention, they should be regarded as illustrations or examples rather than as limitations or restrictions of the invention, since various changes in the construction, combination, and arrangement of the parts may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the inven tion. a

I claim:

1. In a safety bucket, an inwardly extending anti-splash rim near the top of the bucket and a float fitting loosely at the edge and movable in the bucket upon the liquid therein, the float engaging at its upper side, and substantially closing the interior of the bucket against the antisplash rim. 7

2. A bucket in'accordance with claim 1,, havingapouring opening near its upper edge and below the anti-splash rim and substantially covered by the float in its raised position torlim-it the discharge of liquidinpouring.

Atthe top of the sleeve is a cap 56 3. A safety bucket in accordance with claim 1, in which the float is provided with projections spaced about the periphery at its under side for limiting its adherence to the bottom of the bucket so that it may be easily disengaged therefrom.

4. A safety bucket in accordance with claim 1, in which the upper side of the float has projections around its periphery adapted to engage the under side of the antisplash rim to limit its surface engagement therewith.

5. A safety bucket in accordance with claim 1, in which the float has projections at its upper and lower sides to limit surface engagement of the float with the bottom of the pail and with the under side of the antisplash rim.

6. A safety bucket in accordance with claim 1, in which the float fits loosely within the bucket and is movable against the under side of the anti-splash rim in its raised position and a pouring opening in one side of the bucket above the lower side of the float in its raised position and below the lower edge of the anti-splash rim and substantially covered by the adjacent edge of the float in its raised position to limit the discharge of liquid in pouring.

7. A safety bucket of oval cross section having a carrying handle pivoted across the short diameter thereof and having an inwardly extending anti-splash rim near the top of the bucket, and a float freely movable in the bucket upon the surface of liquid therein, the sides of the bucket being substantially straight so that the float may rise and fall in the bucket against the rim and against the bottom thereof depending upon the amount of liquid therein, the float having means at the top and bottom for limiting its surface engagement to the rim and bottom thereof, and a discharge opening near the top of the bucket in the form of a spout substantially covered by the edge of the float in its raised position.

8. In a safety bucket in accordance with claim 1, a portion of the top having a fixed cover thereover and the float engaging the fixed cover in addition to the said rim for closing the top of the bucket with suflicient liquid therein.

9. A safety bucket in accordance with claim 8, in which the cover has a downwardly extending portion and the float has an upwardly extending portion to interengage and cause a hinging action of the float with respect to the cover as the float is raised and lowered by liquid in the bucket.

10. A safety bucket in accordance with claim 8, in which the float and the cover have loosely engaging loop members to limit the movement of the float with respect to the cover.

11. In a safety bucket in accordance with claim 8, an opening in the bottom of the bucket, a valve inside of the bucket for closing it, and means outside of the bucket for operating the valve to open and close it.

12. In a safety bucket in accordance with claim 11, a valve having a fixed shell with openings near the bottom for discharging liquid through the bottom, a movable sleeve and a seat upon which it is closed around the bottom of the shell, a cap for the sleeve and a stem extending through the top of the bucket and having a handle by means of which the sleeve may be raised and lowered.

13. A safety bucket in accordance with claim 12, in which a spring is interposed between the cover of the bucket and the cap of the sleeve for assisting the sleeve in its closing movement.

14. A safety bucket in accordance with claim 12, in which the stem has an arm projecting therefrom and the top of the cover has a clip for engaging the arm when the stem is rotated thereby indicating that the valve sleeve is locked in closed position.

15. In a safety bucket in accordance with claim 11, a cam at the bottom and outside of the bucket for engaging the valve, a stem connected to the cam and extending through the rim of the bucket to the outside thereof, and a handle on the outside of the stem to rotate it and the valve for controlling the opening and closing of the valve.

16. In a safety bucket, an inner anti-splash rim near the top of the bucket, a float movable in the bucket upon the liquid therein, the float exerting a downward pressure upon the liquid and with said rim substantially closing the interior of the bucket against the splashing of liquid therefrom.

17. In a safety bucket, a float movable freely in the bucket upon liquid therein and leaving a small marginal space between the outside of the float and the inside of the bucket, and means in connection with the bucket for loosely engaging the float and permitting it to swing a limited amount but preventing it from passing out of the bucket when liquid is poured therefrom.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,088,453 Roberts Feb. 24, 1914 2,167,619 Bainton Aug. 1, 1939 FOREIGN PATENTS 461,774 Germany June 27, 1928 

